Deseret News archives: With a perfect 10, Nadia stole the show at 1976 Olympics

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on July 18, 2023.

A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.

On July 18, 1976, at the Summer Olympics in Montreal, Nadia Comaneci of Romania became the first gymnast to receive a perfect score of 10 from Olympic judges for her performance on the uneven bars and, moments later, the balance beam.

The perfect scores changed the gymnastics world. She would do it five more times in Montreal. The 14-year-old was the breakout star of the Games — sorry, Sugar Ray Leonard and Bruce Jenner — with three gold medals, followed by two more in 1980, all with her growling coach Bela Karolyi by her side. In all, she won 21 gold medals in world competitions.

Still, Nadia was only 14, living in a hard-line Communist country. She was a world sports darling, but longed for a different life. When she was 28, Comaneci defected to the United States. She married U.S. Olympic gymnast Bart Conner in 1996.

Since then, Comaneci, now 63, works on many humanitarian and charitable causes, and still lends her expertise to gymnastics analysis. Comaneci also has been reconciled with her native country.

And perfect scores are recorded all the time in all levels of gymnastics competitions.

But Nadia was the first.

Here are stories from Deseret News archives about Comaneci’s life:

“Learn all that you can learn in order to be all that you can be”

“Comaneci still perfecting new routines”

“Romania’ star gymnast flees to Hungary”

“Comaneci stays out of limelight for first day of freedom in U.S.”

“Comaneci wants to make movies”

“How will Romania react to return of ex-Olympic star Nadia Comaneci?”

“Karolyi’s critics may growl, but his gymnasts win”